ARTICLES ABOUT RETAILERS BY DATE - PAGE 5

South Florida led the state last year in the number of new retail jobs added, generating about 21,000 of the total 55,000 created statewide, the Florida Retail Federation said Tuesday. "By far the largest growth area that we see is the Miami-Fort Lauderdale metropolitan statistical area," said John Fleming, spokesman for the Florida Retail Federation. The state's trade group tracked jobs created from December 2012 to December 2013. Overall, the retail sector created about one-third of the total jobs added in Florida in 2013, the federation said in a conference call Tuesday.

Photo printing retailer opens in Boca Raton Polaroid Fotobar, a store where customers can get their photos printed in different sizes and materials, opened its latest outpost Friday in Boca Raton . The store is at Town Center at Boca Raton , 6000 Glades Road. Polaroid Fotobar says it lets customers "liberate" their photos from their smartphones or other devices and turn them into works of art. The retailer prints photos on canvas, metal, bamboo and other materials.

Happy Freebie Friday! It's a nippy 43 degrees this morning. Warm up with today's edition of hot freebies like free popcorn at AMC Theatres, coupon savings at Kohl's and Macy's and tasty dining deals at Domino's and Smokey Bones. You also can save at the Fort Lauderdale Orchid Show or get in free at Evergaldes National Park on Monday to celebrate Martin Luther King Day . Use my list to save all weekend long. Like Doreen's Deals on Facebook ; follow Doreen Christensen on Twitter@PrettyGoodIdeas and sign up for Deals text alerts . Freebies Free small popcorn at AMC Theatres: with mobile coupon; expires March 6. Free one year Experian Credit Monitoring from Target ($191 value)

The 2014 retail market outlook doesn't call for an abundance of new construction projects, but that doesn't mean there won't be new retailers opening up shop in South Florida this year, a real estate investment services firm said Tuesday. Instead, retailers will be filling up remnants of vacant space amid an improving economy, a rebounding housing market and lower unemployment rates, Marcus & Millichap executives said Tuesday during a webinar detailing the industry's 2014 forecast.

Santa doesn't always get it right. Carrie Cuoto's blue slippers were too snug. Jessica Coutain's 5-year-old daughter, Jayla, got glittery roller skates but they were too small. And Ariel Maldonado got five devices to stream music wirelessly in his home, but none was the one he wanted. They all went to SuperTarget at Sawgrass Mills on Thursday to rectify their dilemmas. On the day after Christmas, retailers across South Florida welcomed streams of customers who were ready to return or exchange gifts that didn't fit, they didn't like or simply found no use for. It's expected that about one in three consumers will return a holiday gift this season, according to data cited by the Better Business Bureau.

You've heard about personal 3-D printers, seen them online and even laughed about them on a popular TV sitcom. Now you can actually see them in action. Demonstrations of a personal 3-D printer that copies and creates three-dimensional plastic items are now available at eight Office Depot stores in Broward and Palm Beach counties. But you'd best call ahead: It takes more than 40 minutes to print even a small plastic part such as a rook in a chess set or even a small bracelet.

Wednesday is Free Shipping Day 2013 with more than 930 retailers signed up to offer guaranteed Christmas Eve delivery on online purchases with no minimum order. Particpating reatielrs include Bloomingdales, Lord & Taylor, Bass Pro Shops, Radio Shack, Overstock.com, JC Penney , Neiman Marcus and so many others. Also, don't forget to add coupon codes to your orders to save even more. Search for them at RetailMeNot.com . Click here for the deal. Like" Doreen's Deals on Facebook ; follow Doreen Christensen on Twitter@PrettyGoodIdeas and sign up for Deals text alerts .

The door is wide open for state lawmakers to finally pass an Internet sales tax law. It's time they crossed the threshold to level the playing field for Main Street retailers and collect up to $1 billion a year in needed tax revenues. As it is, only retailers with a brick-and-mortar presence in Florida must collect the state's 6-percent sales tax. Lawmakers have claimed their hands were tied by a federal ruling that said only businesses with a physical presence in a state must collect its sales tax. But a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling dismisses that argument, and other reasons for continued resistance are fading fast.